


Sneaky secrets (SLOW UPDATE)

by Niwgamme



Category: Ao no Exorcist | Blue Exorcist
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Bullying, Gen, Growing Up, Imaginary Friends, Rating May Change, School, Tags May Change, Warnings May Change
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-24
Updated: 2016-01-28
Packaged: 2018-03-08 21:51:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,736
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3224711
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Niwgamme/pseuds/Niwgamme
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rin found himself a new friend and Shiro gets excited until he learns the truth. Maybe the friend isn't such a great influence everybody thought he was.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A friend to a six year old

**Author's Note:**

> As said in the title, I am slow to update. Very slow. Consider yourselves warned.

~ 6 years old

i.

Rin was alone in a playground full of cheery laughter and loud voices as every other child had someone to play with. He was occupying one of two swings next to each other. The one next to his was empty. Nobody ever came near it when Rin was there. Everyone was avoiding him. He wasn't even swinging at the moment, he was just sitting there, possibly waiting for his little brother. 

Yukio said he may come when he finished reading his book.

And so he waited and waited. Then, after what seemed to be an eternity, he decided it wasn't worth it. Yukio wasn't coming and Rin had no one to play with. When he was about to leave, a small person approached him.

A boy, no older than him with funny green hair and brown-reddish coat that was too big on him. The bottom hem of the coat was torn into pieces. Maybe he was poor and couldn't afford nice clothes?

The boy was looking at Rin wide-eyed. He looked shy and was probably afraid of Rin. He must have heard something not nice about him and was now wary. The boy surprised him when he went straight for the other swing.

"Hi," spoke the other kid. Rin got a little nervous himself, not knowing why he was talked to when everyone usually avoided him.

"Um, hello." he muttered, just loud enough for the other to hear him. He was keeping his eyes down, glued to the ground as if something very interesting was happening there. Anything just to avoid looking at the boy. When he heard nothing more, he looked up curiously.

The boy was grinning at him.

 

ii.

Shiro was wandering around the house, thinking about the monastery's expenses, when he heard a child's happy shriek. Then he saw his little Rin running towards him and calling enthusiastically: “Daddy! Daddy! I made a friend today!”

He bumped into Shiro's legs and hugged him tightly. Only when his embrace got reciprocated did Shiro register the meaning of the sentence.

Rin had made a friend? Thank goodness. He was worried about Rin's social abilities. He was not antisocial, far from it. His boy was cheerful and trying so very hard to make friends. Unfortunately, there was something about Rin that made other wary of him. He saw himself how the boy got when children avoided him. It was a cursed circle. The more Rin tried, the more the children feared him and the more Rin got frustrated and unhappy.

“Is that so?” he asked excitedly.

“Yes! His name is Amaimon. And he has a brother and wants to have a hamster and he has cool hair but Yukio doesn't like him but I do! We played today and I will play with him tomorrow too and he said I am his bestest friend! He is my bestest friend too!” Rin grinned up at him.

“In that case, you must introduce him to me. I'd like to meet your best friend.”

“Okay.” Rin said smiling and ran away to his room.

 

iii.

A few days later, after hearing a thousand and one stories about Amaimon from Rin, Shiro had decided to go to the playground with the boys that day. Rin had ran ahead, excited about his new 'bestest' friend.

Shiro and Yukio walked slowly, enjoying the walk itself.

"Dad?"

Shiro looked at the little boy walking next to him. He looked strangely nervous, like he was trying to keep a secret that wasn't his to tell. Shiro knew that just by looking, his boys were so easy to read. He gave his son the "father" look and Yukio looked away. He was acting too mature for being a six years old.

Yukio took a deep breath. Shiro found the way children copied adults a bit hilarious. "Rin doesn't have a friend." he whispered.

Shiro faltered in his step. Say what?

"Dad?" Yukio looked up at him.

"What do you mean Yukio? He told me he had a friend."

"I know!" Yukio defended himself. "He told me too! He showed him to me! But dad! He wasn't there! He's not real! Rin's crazy!"

Shiro felt a wave of disappointment wash over him. Ah, so that's how it is.

He kneeled in front of his son, put his hands on Yukio's shoulders and looked him in the eyes. "Listen, Yukio. Rin is not crazy. Sometimes, when children feel very lonely, they make up their own friends. It is not exactly like lying. It is actually nothing like lying. Those friends are real, but they are not. Others can't see them. But it is alright. And if the friend makes your brother very happy... Do you think it could be a bad thing?"

"...No." Yukio thought about it, but he honestly couldn't think it was a bad thing. He still wasn't entirely convinced it was alright, but it wasn't bad. Then a thought occurred to him. "But dad, what about other kids? They don't know. I saw them looking at Rin. They think he's crazy too. I mean-! I don't! But they do."

 

iv.

Rin was already playing with Amaimon when he saw his brother and father enter the playground. They were playing tag game and Amaimon was winning. He was always so cool, jumping the trees and such, Rin never had a real chance but he didn't particularly mind.

He tried to make Yukio play with them and he got him to agree, but he didn't like losing much and said it was stupid.

Rin got a little nervous when he brought Amaimon to meet his father. What if he didn't like him?

He introduced Amaimon the way he saw people introduce others on tv. His father was smiling and he didn't seem angry, not even about Amaimon's choice of clothes or his hair. He kept the tail tucked away so no one else saw it. It was Amaimon and Rin's secret. Rin grinned at the thought.

His father held out his hand and said hello. Amaimon fearlessly took a step towards his father and took his hand to shake it.

Phew. 

His father then told him he had to go back, and that Rin could stay a little longer if he promised to get home before it got dark.

The boys then returned to their play.

 

v.

They stayed a few hours longer, deciding to go home when the sun started to set. Amaimon was never in a rush to get home anyway.

Rin looked around the playground looking for his brother. He heard a group of kids before he saw them. They were loud and standing in a circle. Rin got on the tips of his shoes to get a better view of what was going on in the commotion.

His heart nearly stopped and he gasped in shock.

Yukio!

He heard what the kids were saying. "You're a freak! Both you and your brother. Don't ever come back." and other shouts. _Freak. Weirdo._

One kid even pushed him so hard Yukio stumbled back.

"Rin?" he heard a voice coming from his right side just as he was prepared to run for his brother's aid. He looked at Amaimon who was wearing strange expression. Excited and twisted. He tilted his head at Rin and Rin felt his insides twist. "Will you let them hurt your brother like that?" The world was strangely blurry and he felt like he was on fire, his body felt too hot.

Maybe he had a fever.

"Is it fair that they call your brother a freak? Isn't it the other way around?" Rin looked at him curiously. The world was quiet. Rin wanted to ask him to explain. He couldn't understand him. He kept looking into red eyes.

"They are the real monsters aren't they?" Ah. So that was it.

"And monsters should be punished." Rin mouthed simultaneously with Amaimon's voice and nodded. Yes, he did understand. He smiled at Amaimon and his friend smiled back at him in recognition.

Rin turned back to the group of freaks and walked towards them. The world was still coloured in strange, evil colours. It cleared only when he was done. 

 

vi.

That day was the first time Shiro got a phone call from the hospital, to pick Rin and Yukio up. He kept receiving them as years went on.

 

 


	2. A Friend to an Eight Years Old

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am still not entirely sure where all this is headed. I have a vague idea though and if I go through with it, the rating may truly change and I might have to add some tags as it might get darker. As for ships, who knows. The future remains hidden. No seriously, I've no idea. The only ships I like in this fandom are Amairin, Bonrin, Shima/Rin, Shima/Yukio, Shima/Bon, Amaimon/Mephisto and Shiro/Mephisto. And now I've gotten off the track.  
> I am still playing with the idea that the imaginary friends might be something supernatural.  
> However, I think in this AU, Shiro definitely isn't an exorcist and Rin isn't a demon.
> 
> I haven't read it after myself, so there might be a shitload of mistakes.  
> Also, personal question: Why in the world would anyone read this? xD
> 
> I bet I wrote longer notes than the chapter.

~ Eight years old

i.

Despite of Rin himself claiming he was dumb, it wasn't quite right. Granted, he'd never become a scientist and take pride in a Nobel prize for finding a cure for cancer, nevertheless, even he could put two and two together when the truth stared him in the eyes. He very well understood the looks he received at any given moment from his peers and teachers at school, random strangers outside, or even at home for that matter. He was simply talking to his best friend. The thing about his best friend was - he wasn't quite real.

Rin understood this.

Why should that be a problem though? There wasn't any reason for concern.

He didn't mind one bit. Why should he? Amaimon was a friend who understood him, helped him and supported him. What did it matter if he weren't real?

 

ii.

"Why was I called here? Did Rin do something again?" Shiro asked politely, emphasizing the word again. Concern tinted his voice. He wished Rin would behave himself more.

He was sitting in an uncomfortable chair in an ordinarily looking grey room that was principal's office. He had hoped the last time he had been here would have been the _last_ time, but it appeared he had no such luck.

The principal was a stern woman who had scolded him several times already about his son's behaviour. Last time was when Rin took some other boy's lunch and crumbled it for some stray dog.

There was another person in the room with them. Young lady, who looked like an English literature teacher. Not...Rin's then?

"Oh no. Rin-kun has been quiet recently, he's mostly keeping to himself." said the kind-looking lady.

Oh?

He has?

Shiro blinked at her. His son was fairly obnoxious, loud and a very social boy. He was at home at least. The man frowned to himself. He was a bit worried about Rin's behaviour.

Why was he here again?

"If you don't mind me askin', why was I called if there's no problem?" The principal looked up from the papers on her table.

"There is not a problem, as of _now_ , with your son's behaviour."

"What the principal is trying to say is, we have a suspicion your son might be a dyslectic. He has trouble reading what others handled very quickly."

Al-right...?

Damn.

"There are ways for a child with dyslexia to learn how to read just as easily as a normal child. Unfortunately, this school is not prepared for that." She paused for a moment, making sure Shiro paid her attention. He nodded and she continued. "If you want your son to fit among his peers, you need to find him a specialist and work on his reading. I believe Rin has the potential to learn quickly with proper care. If not, he won't keep up with others in class and that may affect his grades as well as his social life." Once she finished, she handed him several leaflets about dyslexia.

Ah, well then.

 

iii.

Rin was helping with dinner today. And by helping, he meant he was doing it all himself. Amaimon was sitting on the kitchen unit nearby, uselessly looking at him and grinning. Rin wasn't upset by the lack of help though. He'd do it better by himself anyway. He wouldn't entrust cooking rice to the boy.

Yukio walked into the kitchen and headed towards a cabin which held the plates. The one Amaimon was sitting in front of. Yukio moved and his hand went through Amaimon to get the plates.

Rin never liked when that happened. He shuddered involuntarily. In a way, it felt invasive to him. Amaimon was still grinning though. He never minded.

"Don't forget one for Amaimon!" Rin called when Yukio went to set the table.

He heard a sigh from the dining room.

Yukio told him many times before what a waste it was to prepare meal for the friend as well. Sometimes he tried saying there won't be anything left for the others. That's why Rin always made a portion more.

 

iv.

"Rin~" Amaimon tried to get his attention. He whined at him. "Rin~ I am sorry~ I promise I won't do it again!"

Rin was angry. He refused to talk to the green coloured boy. He was sitting by his desk, trying to read. Futilely, might he add. The ignored boy was looking over Rin's shoulder then looking at Rin with a sad expression.

Rin hoped Amaimon realized what he did wrong. No one, _no one_ , would talk badly about his brother. It wasn't anything that bad, but still, Rin felt betrayed and hurt. His job was to protect his younger brother.

"Riiin~" he whined once more. Rin continued looking at the book when he heard a sob. He though his brother might have walked into the room but the room was empty aside from him and Amaimon.

What?

It couldn't be.

Never once had he seen his friend cry.

Oh what had he done?

"I'm sorry~" the boy continued with his sobs.

Rin put a hand on the boy's shoulder and smiled at him. "It's alright. I know you are. Just don't do it again."

His friend looked up at him, the cheeks wet from the tears. When he saw Rin smiling, he smiled in return.

 

After a few minutes, Rin decided to go out when he saw Yukio sitting on a swing all by himself reading a book. Amaimon had held himself back whenever Rin played with Yukio. Rin said it was simply because Yukio couldn't see him, therefore it was no fun for his brother. However Amaimon knew Yukio held resentment towards him. It showed in a way he always flinched whenever Rin mentioned Amaimon standing too close to Yukio.

 


	3. A Friend to a Ten Years Old

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rin's at school and that's about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mistakes, mistakes, typos and wrong spelling! I have no beta so there's that.
> 
> I have no excuses, the title says it all. I really mean it when I say SLOW UPDATES. Also I suck at updating multi-chaptered fics. Next time you see me do something as stupid as starting a multi-chaptered fic, punch me.
> 
> Well, enjoy as much as you can.

~ Ten years old

 

i.

Yukio was safe. He hadn't been bullied in almost two years now. Rin was pretty satisfied with himself. On the other hand, all of their schoolmates were now avoiding him. Not that they ever talked to him in the first place. It still sucked. Or not. It was actually a good thing, he thought. They were evil anyway and Rin already had a friend. One friend was enough.

What more, Yukio made a friend too. Rin knew that his brother was special and now finally others knew too.

Amaimon was special as well, but others would never see that. Get it? 'Cause they couldn't see him. He wasn't real.

Maybe he _was_ crazy.

After all, what ten years old still had an imaginary friend? He did a research – and by research he meant asking his old man – and realized he was broken. Not a monster like others were, but still not perfect.

He felt Amaimon had a bad influence on him from time to time. He understood. But it wasn't as if he cared or as if he didn't like it.

He sighed at the complexity of his mind.

A finger poked him in his shoulder.

"Rin," said a voice next to him. He looked up at the other boy who had decided it would be for the best to follow him around all the time and everywhere and opted to stand beside his desk while he tried to concentrate on what the teachers were saying. They were in the classroom now, at the very back of it, sitting – Amaimon standing and perching over Rin's shoulder – and most definitely NOT concentrating on what the teacher had said. 

Amaimon pointed to the front of the classroom where the teacher looked at him expectantly. She tilted her head, a bit irritated about his lack of response.

"She wants you to go solve the problem. Get up!" Rin was used to Amaimon paying attention _for_ him. It was... nice. Way better than being scolded.

The green-haired boy hauled him up. Rin didn't even bother thinking about how ridiculous that must have looked. That was another issue about the friend he thought about. He felt physical. He would have thought an imaginary friend was just a trick of a mind, seemingly there, but not really. Like Yukio walking through his friend every now and then. However, whenever Rin touched Amaimon, he felt real. And then there was the whole thing about the boy aging together with Rin.

When Rin got in front of the blackboard, everyone was quiet. They knew he'd mess up. He didn't understand this stuff. They'd laugh. Maybe. He got a bit angry for being stupid. He looked at the blackboard, trying to decipher what the DCLXIV meant. 

Just when the teacher opened her mouth to complain about his lack of answer, Amaimon told him: "It's numbers. Just write 664 and that's it." Rin immediately did so, not doubting his friend. The teacher looked at him surprised. She hadn't been expecting him to answer, because she didn't believe in him either. After she gave him a few more problems to solve, just to be sure, she sent him to sit back, asking if Yukio taught him Roman numerals. Because apparently Yukio was smart. He was, Rin knew that. He was going to be a doctor after all. The older twin was proud.

 

ii.

Rin had art class that day as well. He liked it, not really because he was good at it (he thought of himself as ordinary), but because everyone would pay attention to their own work and the teacher would leave them do as they liked, only giving advice to those that seemed to need it. Sometimes, she would even come to Rin, praise him for job well done, and talk about his work some more.

“Today, I want you to draw your best friend,” the teacher said as the bell rang. Many of the kids were eager to get started and let it be known by their cheers of excitement. Just as many moans of mild annoyance were heard. Some kids stayed indifferent, Rin being one of them.

“You may use whatever technique you want, don’t be afraid to try tempera paint. Charcoal is in that box,” she pointed at the cabinet where art supplies were kept in the class.

Rin looked around the class. Many of the kids had already paired up with their friends, saying they would draw each other. Girls were giggling as they inspected their friends. Boys in the front of the class took their job much lighter, making fun of their friends and their big ears and messy hair.

Rin looked down at the blank paper the teacher gave him as she walked around the class handing out the papers to everyone. She smiled at him and went to the next kid.

Amaimon observed Rin, curious, but when nothing happened for some time, he inquired: “Who are you gonna draw? Are you gonna draw me? Yukio? Tell me Rin. Rin?” Rin knew he shouldn’t look up, however he almost gave in. He remember how strange it would look to others in the last second.

He needed Amaimon to sit across him to see him better. He couldn’t ask him.

Rin fished around in his bag and took out crayons. Green, brown and the skin-like looking one. Those were essential. Black too, maybe.

And so he started drawing his best friend. It was difficult drawing mostly from memory as the real one was looking over Rin’s shoulder.

“Is it me?” he asked excitedly. “It is me, right?”

“I can see it’s me, that’s my hair.” He had many other remarks about the drawing. “Only my hair isn’t _that_ pointy,” and “Rin, I don’t think that colour shade is quite right. You should take that girl’s crayon, that one looks better.” Rin simply frowned and let it be.

Being ignored, Amaimon lost interest in Rin for the moment and left to wander around the class looking at other people’s work. Rin would occasionally hear bursts of laughing. Many times Rin forgot himself and looked up, immediately seeing his friend snickering and smiling at him.

“This guy drew such small eyes it looks so strange!” he went to another boy. “Oh! Rin, come, take a look at this! This looks so cool!” Amaimon waved at Rin to catch his attention.

Rin smiled to himself and mumbled something about Amaimon being silly.

Everyone was finishing their work with a few exceptions saying they’d finish theirs at home. Rin looked at his completed drawing. It wasn’t the best, but he certainly recognized his friend. He could have bet Yukio and his father would be able to recognize him as well, considering he had drawn a few pictures before in order to show them how Amaimon looked in his head.

Next came the bad part, the one he hated the most about art class. They gathered their works and the teacher started showing them to everyone. The teacher was very kind and said something nice about every piece. She also tried to guess who had been displayed on them.

When she showed Rin’s piece, the boy tried to make himself invisible.

His classmates looked at the boy in the drawing. “His green is hair!” one boy pointed out and others started laughing.

Rin sat up straight. Damn them. He knew this was gonna happen.

One girl started laughing even louder, “Look at his hair! It’s so pointy!” Rin didn’t think it was that bad. They must have had realized it was his drawing. He confirmed his suspicions when a boy looked straight at him, smirking and saying “He doesn’t even exist! Rin doesn’t have any friends.”

_Snap._

“Kakeru-kun, that’s not a nice thing to say. You should apologize to Rin-kun.” The teacher was trying to get everyone to calm down, but Rin wasn’t paying her any attention. Instead he looked very seriously at Amaimon’s smirking face.

Amaimon was looking at the boy who dared to deny his existence. Rin thought the expression was kinda scary, not something he would ever want directed at himself.

_Snap._

His own face split into smirk.

Rin jumped from his chair aiming for the trash-boy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have an exam tomorrow! Good luck me! Spending the time I should be studying with writing. Well...
> 
> (I still have no idea where this fic's going to be honest.)


End file.
